Siemens acquisition of Invensys Rail receives EU Commission approval

The European Commission, under the EU Merger Regulation, has cleared the proposed acquisition of Invensys Rail, the railway signaling division of the Invensys Group of the UK, by Siemens of Germany.

The commission's investigation confirmed that Invensys Rail and Siemens are not close competitors and that the merged entity would continue to face competition from a number of other strong competitors, such as Thales, Alstom, Bombardier and Ansaldo.

The commission examined the competitive effects of the proposed acquisition in the markets for the sale of railway signaling projects and products for mainline railway and mass transit in the European Economic Area as a whole and in specific member states where Invensys Rail and Siemens are both active.

The commission found that Siemens and Invensys Rail have geographically complementary activities and are not each other's closest competitors. In addition, the commission found that the merged entity would face strong competitors and that customers of railway signaling projects and products have significant buyer power.

The commission therefore concluded that the transaction would not raise competition concerns.